The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1190316
JANUARY 2020 ■ 57 OFFENSIVE LINEMAN TONY ADAMS (2014-17) Starting as a true freshman on a college of- fensive line is difficult. Adams, a Rivals.com three-star prospect out of Charlotte (N.C.) Independence, made the hard look easy, be- coming a four-year starting right guard for the Wolfpack. Adams was a two-time second-team All- ACC performer and didn't allow a sack his last two years. He started 47 of the 50 games he played in at NC State, and logged 3,358 career snaps. OFFENSIVE LINEMAN TERRONNE PRESCOD (2015-18) Prescod, a left guard, was simply known as "Big T" and proved to be a versatile performer, filling in at tackle in a pinch. He earned honorable mention All-ACC honors his senior year, but also received first-team All-America recognition from Pro Football Focus and ESPN. Sporting News named him a second-team All-American, while the Associated Press had him on its third team. The 6-5, 334-pounder from Decatur, Ga., started 26 of the 49 games he played in during his college career, amassing 1,937 snaps. OFFENSIVE LINEMAN R.J. MATTES (2009-12) The versatile Mattes was a coveted Ri- vals.com four-star recruit coming out of Concord (N.C.) Robinson in the class of 2008, who went on to start 42 of the 44 games he played in, while handling four different offensive line positions. The 6-6, 313-pounder was named a second-team All-ACC performer by the league coaches his senior year. He started 10 contests at right tackle in 2010, after be- ing moved from right guard. Mattes opened 12 contests his redshirt junior year at left tackle, and then logged 11 starts at left guard (and two at left tackle) his fifth-year senior season in 2012. KICKER NIKLAS SADE (2011-14) The former Raleigh Wakefield High product from Germany was originally slated to go to Nebraska, but made a late switch to NC State. The coveted kicker was selected in play in the U.S. Army All- American Bowl. Sade proved steady at NC State, making 167 of 172 extra points (97.1 percent) and 55 of 79 field goals (69.6 percent) for the Wolfpack. He tallied 332 career points, which ranks No. 15 all time in the ACC and No. 1 at NC State, and also holds the school record with 55 made field goals. As a junior, Sade was a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award, which is given to the nation's top kicker. ■ OFFENSIVE LINEMAN GARRETT BRADBURY (2015-18) The 6-3, 300-pound Bradbury is one of the more remarkable success stories of the decade. He arrived as 240-pound two-star tight end from Charlotte Christian, redshirted and eventually was tried on the defensive line, before settling at cen- ter. He broke into the starting lineup his redshirt sophomore year and was a three-year starter and two-time All-ACC selection. During his senior year, he earned consensus All-America honors and won the Dave Rimington Trophy as the nation's top center. He didn't allow a single quarterback sack his senior year, which helped him get drafted No. 18 overall by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft. He has quickly become entrenched in the Vikings' lineup. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN OFFENSIVE LINEMAN JOE THUNEY (2012-15) The late Don Horton, who was NCSU's former offensive line coach, landed a gem in Thuney, a Rivals.com three-star prospect out Kettering (Ohio) Archbishop Alter High. Like Tony Adams, he was recruited to possibly be a center for NC State, but played up-and-down the offensive line before settling in at left tackle. Thuney started 33 of 41 games he played in and was named a first-team All-American his senior year by USA Today, and first-team All-ACC by the media (second unit by the coaches). The New England Patriots drafted Thuney with the No. 78 overall pick in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft. The left guard is the first player in NFL history to start in the Super Bowl his first three years, winning two of them. FILE PHOTO